Michele Drohan, EVP Client Services
(No, not you. Your catalog!)
If you haven’t heard, the United States Postal Service has increased the piece rate weight limit for catalog mailings. As of January 22, 2017, your catalog can qualify for the Flat-Size Marketing Mail postal piece rate if it weighs 4.0 ounces or less (up from the long-reigning 3.3 ounces). With postage up to 60% of the total cost to create, print and mail a catalog, this is huge news. Huge. For the same amount of postage, we can sell more stuff. I can already see ROIs spiking from sea to shining sea.
Quick! Add 8, 16 or what the heck, maybe even 24 pages (depending on your paper weight) to whatever book you’re working on right now. Go, man, go!
Right?
Not so fast.
Sure, adding pages is the obvious thing to do. But, catalog friends, I only ask that you take a moment to be thoughtful about this. Remember, this is not a page count issue – it’s a weight issue. And there are other ways to add weight to a catalog. What are you looking to accomplish? Your objectives will ultimately define the best way to take advantage of this gift from the USPS gods.
Fancy up your form factor.
Want to make sure your message gets noticed?
How about testing a heavy-stock cover wrap or a belly band around your book? Gatefolds get noticed and they can hide clunky legal disclaimers at the same time (a two-fer!). Maybe an inserted mini-book to hold a needed how-to, a case study with happy customer testimonials, an inside peek at your brand or business, or a seasonally appropriate customer gift guide. Amplify an offer with a tip-on card or a sticky note that draws the eye, underscores the sense of the deal and encourages physical engagement (pulling them off in order to redeem, remember or get more information). We’ve seen as much as a 20% lift with the addition of special add-on tactics like these when the offer and call-to-action are clear and relevant.
These are just a few of the affordable form factors that can provide more real estate for products, but also provide unique places for key messaging that might get lost on a typical catalog page. There are also unusual paper stocks and more complex add-ons that might, by the way, also achieve additional discounts with the USPS 2017 TSI (Tactile Sensory Interactive) Promotion. Heard of it? Check it out.
Don’t forget that you don’t have to add something to change up your format. Your base form factor itself is also up for grabs. Think about increasing your trim size (checking with your printer first, of course, for any implications it may cause). Depending on your starting point, this could give each spread an inch or two more of real estate. A nice option because the benefit pays out on each spread, not just incremental pages.
Use groovy gizmos.
Sound chip, anyone?
I’m actually only half joking here. There are so many ways to increase engagement these days, and with added weight now less of an issue, you might want to explore the possibilities. Surely you’ve seen the Republic of Tea catalog? They provide a sample bag of tea in every book (shut the front door)! How about a scratch and sniff? These devices – especially when they tie back to your brand and product offering – can make a powerful impact on your mail audience. And by the way, these are some add-on gadgets that are also part of the USPS 2017 TSI Promotions. (Yes, including sound chips.)
Such. A. Deal.
Add pages.
See? I’m not asking you to totally disregard this option.
The beautiful thing about adding more pages is the real estate it gives you to test new strategies – real estate usually dedicated to high-performance core product you may not have wanted to give up in the past. It could be as straightforward as this: You’ve always had to slim down your merchandise selection to fit your limited page count. Now you don’t have to.
Boom. Done.
But extra pages also give you the chance to play with some other opportunities and business ideas. Want to test a new product on your audience (but not ready to give up on the core mix)? Want to see what a heavily branded, mission-focused editorial message does for lift? Want to play with over-amplified, long-form hero treatments of your best sellers — maybe to see how they perform with best customers or prospects? Want to test themed spreads? Or something else mission-critical to your business that I don’t happen to be coming up with right now?
This is your chance for healthy testing without (1) risking loss on your core business or (2) adding postage costs.
So go for it. Be bold; standing out is imperative to brand survival. Check your work; make sure you’re adding value in whatever you do, and don’t forget a strong call-to-action. How you choose to add the weight is up to you.
Can’t decide where to put on the extra weight? Send me an email at micheled@jschmid.com and let us help you be the BOLD brand you should be.
Tags: catalog industry, Flat-Size Marketing Mail, Michele Drohan, Strategy, United States Postal Service